Homeward Bound
by BunniesOfDoom
Summary: After Ed leaves to travel the West, his automail keeps breaking mysteriously. Winry attempts to figure out why. Brotherhood, post-anime.


**Inspired by my younger sister when we were watching the end of the anime. Set in the Brotherhood universe, post-anime. Constructive criticism always welcome!**

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After Ed left for the western border, Winry had figured that she wouldn't be seeing him for a long time. She had assumed that, similar to Ed and Al's quest to get their bodies back, she would see him in about a year or so, when his automail leg was finally so damaged that he had to come back to her to fix it. Maybe she'd receive a letter or phone call every once in a while, if she was lucky.

She's understandably surprised when, only three months after he left, she sees Ed coming down the road to her and Granny Pinako's house. He's starkly outlined against the glow of the setting sun. She blinks a couple times, and pinches her arm to make sure that she isn't dreaming, but it's real. Ed is there.

Ed finds himself tackled in a tight hug as he approaches the front steps. Winry only lets him go when he protests that he can't breathe. "Are you trying to kill me?" he asks grumpily.

She just grins at him. "I wasn't expecting to see you so soon!" she explains happily, offering him a hand in getting back up. He takes her hand, and they head back in together. He's limping slightly, the way he does when his automail is acting up. "Did you manage to break your leg already?" she huffs irritably, face drawn in a scowl.

"Uh, yeah," Ed says sheepishly. "Not on purpose though!" He shifts guiltily under the weight of her disapproving stare.

Winry rolls her eyes, but she has a fond smile on her face. "Have you really gotten that sloppy at maintaining your automail?"

Ed is still not looking her in the eye, probably trying to avoid the brunt of her wrath for breaking her precious creations. "That must be it," he says quickly, scratching the back of his head.

"Well, here's a spare you can use in the meantime," she instructs him, handing it over. "I'm going to start on dinner. I'll start working on your leg after."

After dinner, she checks the extent of the damage and looks at her work schedule. "I should be able to finish the repairs in about three days," she decides finally, preparing herself for a series of all-nighters. No doubt Ed wants to get back on the road as quickly as possible.

He surprises her, though. "Don't overwork yourself," he instructs her gently.

"You just don't want to pay more for a rush job," Winry accuses. She sighs, relenting. "It's really good to have you back." She finishes his automail repairs in the allotted three days, and her heart sinks at the sight of his retreating back on the horizon. Who know when she'll see him again?

Apparently, much sooner than she thought. It happens several more times—each time, after he's been away only a couple months at most—before Winry starts to develop a theory on how Ed's automail keeps spontaneously breaking. She asks him each time, but he keeps giving her lame excuses.

The sixth time it happens is when she can finally get her answers. Ed returns in the middle of the night, grumpy and sleep-deprived. This time, the damage is to one of the wires connecting to his nerves, which is painful enough to keep Ed awake at night. Not long after swapping his leg for the spare, Ed passes out on the couch in the living room, ready for some well-deserved sleep.

Winry makes herself some tea and settles herself in a chair near the couch. She's surprised to see him stir when she sits down. "It's really good to be back here, Winry," he slurs, voice thick from sleep.

Winry smiles fondly. Sleep deprivation was like truth serum for Ed; a lack of sleep was one of the few things that would make him be completely honest about how he was feeling. "It's really good to have you back here with me," she replies fondly, taking one of his hands in her own. "How do you keep breaking your automail so quickly?" she asks, knowing that she'll actually receive an answer this time.

Ed, although still incredibly sleepy, looks sheepish. "Can you keep a secret?" he queries, sounding about five years old. At her nod, he continues. "I kept hoping my automail would break quickly so I could come see you," he mutters quietly, blushing slightly. "So I might have—helped it along a little."

She gauges his expression for a few seconds, trying to see if he's serious. He is. She bursts out laughing at how ridiculous he is.

Ed looks offended. "What's so funny?"

"You idiot!" she scolds him, still giggling a bit. "You know you can come see me anytime, not just when you need repairs!" From the look on Ed's face, he never considered that possibility. She shakes her head, frustrated and amused at the same time

The repairs on Ed's leg take longer than the usual three days, because Winry keeps interrupting her work with phone calls to clients and conversations with Granny Pinako. A week after Ed arrived in the middle of the night, Winry presents him with the repaired leg. "Get to bed early tonight, so we can make the early train tomorrow morning," she instructs him.

Ed looks confused. "We? Don't you mean you?" he asks, pointing to himself. He's hopeless.

"No, I'm pretty sure I meant 'we.' I'm going with you, after all," she responds wryly.

"You are?" Ed gapes at her. "Why?"

"Because, you apparently need automail repairs way too often. This way is more efficient." She smiles at his dumbstruck expression. "And I could use a vacation."

His expression changes from confused to fond. "You're coming along?" he asks quietly.

"Yeah," she confirms, lacing her fingers through his. "We'll go together."


End file.
